Things To Know About Chinese New Year

Chinese New Year is considered to be one of the most significant holidays not only for China, but for the entire Asia as well. The following facts about Spring Festival will make you interested in this popular holiday.

Gripping Facts about New Year in China

No Stable Date

The date of Spring Festival varies each year. This is because Chinese New Year directly depends on the lunar and solar calendars as well as moon phases.

Why Spring Festival

Being related to the sun calendar, Chinese New Year is usually called Spring Festival due to the beginning of spring that, according to the calendar, starts between February 4-18. These days winter is not so strong, and the temperature usually begins to go up.

Chinese Zodiac

The majority of Chinese are still superstitious and believe in astrology. Therefore, their zodiac is still significant to them. Twelve animals, each related to a certain year, create a cycle of the zodiac, which creation dates back thousands years ago.

Worldwide Celebration

During the festival, schools and universities are usually closed, and adults are likely to take long vacations to stay with their families. However, this happens not only in China, as Spring Festival is celebrated in several other Asian countries (Indonesia, Philippines, Vietnam, South Korea, Malaysia, North Korea, Taiwan, Brunei, Singapore, Hong Kong, Macau).

Red Gifts

It is an old tradition to get the presents (usually money) into red envelops to present them to the younger generation. Bosses also like to congratulate their employees with the bonuses in bright red little boxes.

European Celebration

As there is Chinese population not only on territorial China, but in the entire world in separate Chinatowns as well, people there also support their native traditions and celebrate the festival in their local area. For example, in 2015, in London, there were more than 500 000 people who joined the Chinese New Year Celebration.

Moving Celebration

According to the researches, approximately 4% of the population of the world is on the move during these holidays. More than 3.5 billion trips take place around the China these times. In the USA, nearly 100 million people make more than 50 miles traveling to their desired destinations to celebrate Chinese New Year.

Fireworks Greatest Show

The midnight of Chinese New Year is considered to be an hour when the biggest amount of fireworks is lit in the entire world. It should be stated that China produces nearly 85% of all the world’s pyrotechnics. Such a great amount can be explained with the legend, which says that evil demons are scared of loud noises and bright lights and are tend to run away.

Lantern Festival

On the 16th day of the celebration, there is a special event that so many people are waiting for – the Lantern Festival. At the end of 15th according to the traditional lunar calendar, when the moon is the brightest, all the relatives gather around the table for dinner, launch fireworks and light lanterns to symbolize the family unity and indissolubility.